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Birthday Beginnings

For someone who tends to burn the candle at both ends I generally view my birthday as an opportunity to get away. Already frustrated that I had to share my 35th birthday with a Super Bowl that would not include my Niners, I was kind of bummed that the Courage Conference I had been wanting to attend for a year now, would also put the kibosh on plans to leave town. Yet as He often does, God put a tug at my heart to attend the conference and I felt a subtle reassurance in my spirit that it would be more valuable to me than a night or two away.

Attending the Courage Conference was certainly the greatest gift I could have given myself.

I was equipped…

~ “What if you believed you could change the world? Would you? Would you turn off your Facebook and write a book or an apology letter instead? Would you believe in God? Would you believe in yourself?” – Jenny Williamson

~ “Someone in the world is praying a prayer that you are the answer to, but if you are not being the YOU God intends you to be, then their prayer may go unanswered.” –Jenny Williamson

~ “Hell intervenes in our lives as children; we get derailed and begin not being who we are meant to be. We get stuck in a sense of comfort, mediocrity, or pain.”
-Jenny Williamson

I was encouraged…

~”God will use for good what the devil attempts to use to destroy you.” – Aquanetta Gordon

“I (God) will supply all your needs; I am always with you…even in the bathroom.” –Aquanetta Gordon

“Learn how to give things to God and not take them back.” -Aquanetta Gordon

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”(Heb.11: 1)

“The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed.” (Romans 8:16-19)
“There is no condemnation with God. If He brings something painful, something that has had us locked in shame or guilt, to our mind – it is to heal us.” – Barbara Wilson

I was empowered…

“I freed a thousand slaves I could have freed a thousand more if only they knew they were slaves.” – Harriet Tubman (shared by Barbara Wilson – she couldn’t be set free to know her identity and pursue her destiny, until she recognized she was a slave to her own guilt and shame)

“We get rocked because we make the wrong things the constants in our lives, God is the ONLY constant.” – Chaya

“Bitterness can almost be life giving in the strangest sense. It gives us a false sense of control and keeps us connected to our life experiences. But letting go of the bitterness gives you real life.” –Chaya

“God doesn’t put dreams on our heart to bash them, but to fulfill them.” – Jenny Williamson

“Destiny is not just for us, but it is the legacy we leave.” – Jenny Williamson

“I need to be faithful to what God puts in front of me right now, even if it means I won’t change the world at this moment.” –Clayton Butler

…by the simply ordinary, yet completely extraordinary speakers and God’s living word.

The conference certainly left me with a lot to think about and a renewed sense of determination to discover my identity and live out my destiny. It was quite apparent from the lines in the foyer for the many resources being provided at the conference that the speakers and the messages they delivered impacted hundreds of others as well. I truly couldn’t have anticipated all the awesome information I received this past weekend and the new journey I am beginning. I feel at the young age of 35, I now have the tools to discover the gifts God has already placed inside me. Jenny Williamson also reminded attendees that “we aren’t responsible for fulfilling our own destinies, God is – all we need to do is show up.“

Well God, I’m here…let’s see what’s in store for the next 35 years!

Amber P

C2BU traveled to Reno, NV to host a conference on domestic minor sex trafficking. It was so encouraging to see people give up their Friday night and all day Saturday to learn of an evil that wants us to believe it is far far away from us when in reality it is literally in our own backyard. We heard a personal story of a young woman who at 15 years of age was held captive by this evil on the streets in Reno and how by the divine hand of God a church youth group reached out to her and prayed for her. Now over ten years later, she has been set free shining a light into this darkness making those of us who would rather believe it doesn’t happen here understand that in every city in every state in every country around the world, children are being sold for sex and it is up to us to “preach the good news and set them free”. Thank you Sparks Christian Fellowship for hosting this event. C2BU will be working with local churches and other non-profits to bring additional training and resources to the city of Reno to fight this evil. Our “dream” is to offer girls who are on the streets in Reno a safe home, someone to believe in them and call them family … we want to bring them home, home to Courage House!

I have been leading worship in churches and chapel services since I was a kid. There have been moments that I really felt like the people in church have truly entered in and were humbled before the Lord. But I must say that the most sincere worship service that I have ever had the honor of being a part of came to me last week at the Chowchilla women’s prison. We were there doing a mini-Courage Conference. Jenny spoke about purpose, I shared my testimony of redemption, and Pastor Joe Johnson ministered the Father’s love in prayer to the women. We also brought a prayer team to pray for, encourage and love the women. So many wanted prayer and ministry.

In they walked – blue uniforms covering their bodies and shame covering many of their faces. There were a few ladies who truly knew and understood the grace of Jesus, but many did not. I began to play the wonderful old hymn “There is Power in the Blood”, a song that I have led in MANY church services. But when these women began to sing the words – “there is power, power, wonder working power in the blood of the Lamb,” I realized that they knew something a lot of us church folk SAY we know, but it hasn’t sunk in yet. They knew that they were prisoners. They knew that they were not worthy of grace. They were humbled, locked up – guilty.

As I walked across the prison yard and back out to freedom, my chest was heavy with guilt. I kept thinking about my mistakes and how unworthy I am.

The Lord has lavished grace on all of us; let us not forget.

As we walk out of our churches on Sunday mornings, let our hearts be heavy with the realization that we don’t deserve it, the humility to accept it, and the excitement to share it.

Chaya